Prepared by:
SKINNER & PASCHKE, PLLC
204 W. Hickman Road * Waukee, Iowa50263
Tel. (515) 987-0022 Fax. (515) 987-6972
IOWA PEACE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
Week 2:January 20-24
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With the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday and caucuses on Monday and Tuesday, activity at the Capitol was limited to just Wednesday and Thursday. Despite the short work week, legislators began holding numerous committee and subcommittee meetings. This week marked the beginning of bill movement within policy subcommittees and the examination of Governor Branstad’s budget recommendations within budget subcommittees.
LEGISLATION
SF 2045 – Penalties for State Employees
Senate File 2045 requires a finder of fact to determine which state employee(s) have fault and how much fault occurred in a civil or administrative action involving another state employee. It would place liability on the individual to cover the civil liability. The bill also specifically applies to collective bargaining agreements. The bill has been referred to the Senate Labor & Business Relations committee.
SF 2041 – Silver Alert Program
Senate File 2041 creates a Silver Alert Program within the Department of Public Safety to aid in the identification and location of cognitively impaired people who are missing. It requires a law enforcement agency to confirm that a cognitively impaired person has been missing for less than 72 hours and the person is believed to be in danger of serious injury or death. The bill has been referred to the Senate Judiciarycommittee.
SF 2040 – Parole Officers in IPERS
Senate File 2040 provides that parole officers employed by correctional services be included within the protection occupation category of IPERS. The bill has been referred to theSenate State Governmentcommittee.
SSB 3104 – Emergency Messaging System Fund
Senate Study Bill 3104 establishes a mass notification and emergency message system fund. The money in the fund is to be used exclusively to provide for the purchase and ongoing operation of a system capable of providing mass notifications and emergency messaging to the public. The bill has been referred to a Senate State Government subcommittee.
SSB 3103 – Protections for Volunteer EMS Providers
Senate Study Bill 3103 adds certain protections to the current Volunteer Emergency Services Providers Job Protection Act. It would prohibit an employer from disciplining an employee for joining a volunteer emergency services unit. The bill has been referred to a Senate State Governmentsubcommittee.
SSB 3102 & HSB 545 – Emergency Management Assistance
Senate Study Bill 3102 and House Study Bill 545 both allow proclamations of disaster emergency made by the governor to extend the terms and conditions of the interstate emergency management assistance compact to situations in which a disaster proclamation of an affected state has not been made by that state’s governor. It also provides additional powers and duties to the director of the department in these situations. The bills have been referred to a Senate State Government subcommittee and a House Public Safety subcommittee.
SSB 3084 & HSB 549 – Disabled Vehicles
Senate Study Bill 3084 and House Study Bill 549 relates to the removal of abandoned vehicles from public or private property and the removal of damaged vehicles from a roadway. The bill now gives a representative of the DOT the ability to remove such a vehicle. The bills have been referred to a Senate Transportation subcommittee and a House Transportation subcommittee.
SSB 3083 – Criminal Sentencing of Juveniles
Senate Study Bill 3083 allows a court to suspend the sentence of a juvenile in district court and suspend any mandatory minimum sentences in whole or in part if the juvenile did not commit a Class A felony and is not being prosecuted as a youthful offender. The bill has been referred to a Senate Judiciary subcommittee.
SSB 3079 – Kidnapping
Senate Study Bill 3079 changes the definition of kidnapping in the second degree to include any kidnapping where the victim is 16 years of age or younger and the kidnapping is not child stealing in violation of Iowa Code section 710.5. A person who commits kidnapping in the second degree commits a Class B felony and may also be required to register as a sex offender if the kidnapping was sexually motivated. The bill would also enhance the penalty for a kidnapping in the third degree to a Class B felony if the person has a previous conviction for kidnapping. The bill has been referred to aSenate Judiciary subcommittee.
SSB 3077 – Electronic Weapons
Senate Study Bill 3077 requires the DPS to develop training standards for the use of electronic weapons, including stun guns and tasers, by law enforcement agencies. The training must include a completion of an electronic weapons safety course. The bill has been referred to a Senate Judiciary subcommittee.
SSB 3076 & HSB 500 – Sexually Violent Predators
Senate Study Bill 3076 and House Study Bill 500 both define “convicted” in Iowa Code chapter 229A as the current law does not define conviction. The bills also permit the use of juvenile delinquency proceedings as evidence in the civil commitment proceeding of a sexually violent predator. The bills have been referred to a Senate Judiciary subcommittee and a House Judiciary subcommittee.
SSB 3075 – Subpoenas on Peace Officers
Senate Study Bill 3075 specifies that a subpoena may be served at the principal place of employment of a peace officer if the subpoena is related to the performance of an act within the scope of duty. The bill has been referred to a Senate Judiciary subcommittee.
SSB 3070 – Thefts
Senate Study Bill 3070 increases the monetary thresholds based on value for the first, second, third and fourth degrees of theft.The bill has been referred to a Senate Judiciary subcommittee.
SSB 3066 – Public Safety Answering Point Services
Senate Study Bill 3066 requires each public safety answering point to be located within an enhanced 911 service area in the state and be operated or maintained by dispatch personnel who are physically present at the answering point. It also requires that answering point provide enhanced 911 service within the service area where they are located. The bill has been referred to a Senate State Government subcommittee.
HSB 547 & SSB 3017 – Motor Vehicle Enforcement Officers
House Study Bill 547 & Senate Study Bill 3017 amends Iowa Code section 8A.412 to exclude motor vehicle enforcement officers employed as peace officers from the merit system. The bills have been referred to a House Transportation subcommittee and a Senate Transportation subcommittee.
HSB 546 – Precursor Substances
House Study Bill 546 determines that a person commits a Class D felony if he or she possesses sodium hydroxide, ammonia nitrate, ammonia sulfate or light or medium petroleum distillates with the intent to manufacture a controlled substance. If the person has children present at the time of the violation, he or she will have committed child endangerment. The bill has been referred to a House Public Safety subcommittee.
SF 2036 – Hidden Compartments
Senate File 2036 prohibits a person from knowingly designing, building, constructing or fabricating a vehicle with a hidden compartment that is intended to facilitate the unlawful concealment or transportation of a controlled substance. The bill would not apply to a peace officer acting within the scope of lawful duty. The bill has been referred to a Senate Transportation subcommittee.
SF 2033 – Service Dog Abuse
Senate File 2033 creates a new criminal offense for a person who owns or possesses a dog that attacks a service dog. The bill would exclude certain circumstances where the two dogs are owned by the same person or the service dog was not presently under the control of its owner. A person convicted of service dog abuse is guilty of a simple misdemeanor. The bill has been referred to a Senate Judiciary subcommittee.
SF 2030 – Minor Possession of Alcohol
Senate File 2030 provides that a person who is 18, 19 or 20 years of age and who purchases, attempts to purchase or possesses alcohol commits a simple misdemeanor punishable byascheduledfineof$200forafirstoffense,asimplemisdemeanorpunishablebya$500fineandasubstance abuse evaluationorthesuspensionoftheperson’smotorvehicleoperatingprivilegesforaperiodnottoexceedoneyearfor a secondoffense,orasimplemisdemeanorpunishablebya $500 fineandthesuspensionoftheperson’smotorvehicle operating privilegesforaperiodnottoexceedoneyearforathirdorsubsequentoffense. The bill has been referred to a Senate Judiciary subcommittee.
HF 2043 – Emergency Warning Systems
House File 2043 allows trustees of any township to establish and maintain an emergency warning system. It also allows a county to assume the powers and duties of township trustees relating to warning systems for any township located in an unincorporated area of the county. The bill has been referred to the House Local Government committee.
SSB 3044, SF 2014 & HF 2012 – Possession of Firearms & Ammunition
Senate Study Bill 3044, Senate File 2014 and House File 2012 lower the age of a person to 12 years of age from the current law that allows a 14 year old to have a pistol and ammunition for the gun in certain supervised settings.The bills have been referred to a Senate Natural Resources & Environment subcommittee and the Senate Judiciary committee.
HSB 522 – Criminal Gang Participation
House Study Bill 522 changes the requirements for an individual to be charged with a Class D felony for participating in or being a member of a criminal street gang. To be charged, the person must participate in or be a member of a criminal street gang and commit or aid and abet a public offense that is punishable by a term of imprisonment of one or more years. The bill has been referred to a House Judiciary subcommittee.
HSB 521 – Abandoned Firearms & Ammunition
House Study Bill 521 requires all firearms or ammunition seized by a law enforcement agency that are deemed abandoned to be deposited with the DPS. The firearms or ammunition may be held by the department and used for law enforcement, testing, comparisons by a lab, or destroyed or disposed of. The bill has been referred to a House Judiciary subcommittee.
SF 2027 – Harassment of Minors
Senate File 2027 specifies that a person who purposefully, without a legitimate purpose, has personal contact with a minor after the minor’s parent or guardian has prohibited that person from having contact with the minor commits harassment of a minor. The minor must be 15 years of age or younger and the alleged perpetrator must be 18 years of age or older. A person who commits this crime would commit a simple misdemeanor, unless the person has previously been convicted of a sex offense against a minor or a comparable offense, which would then be elevated to a serious misdemeanor.The bill has been referred to a Senate Judiciary subcommittee.
Prepared by:
SKINNER & PASCHKE, PLLC
204 W. Hickman Road * Waukee, Iowa50263
Tel. (515) 987-0022 Fax. (515) 987-6972